Fill the Hill 2004

The prohibition of marijuana has failed, and Canadians are the victims. As the Senate Committee on Illegal Drugs unanimously concluded: prohibition causes more harm to Canadians than marijuana itself.

The evidence is all around us:

– Consumption rates today are at all time highs
– Marijuana production in Canada is by all accounts out of control
– Respect for the political and legal system has been eroded
– Medical marijuana patients do not have safe access to quality medicine
– Marijuana is more readily available in our schools than cigarettes or alcohol
– StatsCan report: 93,000 drug charges in 2003, 75% are marijuana charges
– Marijuana offences continue to be a pretext for search, detention, and arrest
– Marijuana continues to be a lucrative source of revenue for the black market

These are all the symptoms of prohibition and the failure of government to implement clear regulatory controls over marijuana in Canada. The policy of prohibition has failed Canadians and by not removing this harmful and antiquated policy, our politicians are failing us too. Prohibition continues to spur the proliferation of marijuana grow-ops and with the policy of prohibition, consumption rates have risen to levels never before seen.

Prohibition has increased marijuana consumption rates, increased its availability, and poses a serious threat to the health and safety of all Canadians. It’s time to repeal a failed policy against a substance which was unanimously found to be less harmful than the laws prohibiting its use. It’s time to repeal prohibition.

On Saturday, June 5, 2004 Canadians from across the country will stage an unprecedented political demonstration on Parliament Hill. Endorsed by the B.C. Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA), Fill the Hill: Freedom March on Parliament Hill will feature prominent political leaders and activists from across Canada.

Speakers include the Honourable Senator Pierre Claude Nolin, member of the Senate of Canada and Chair of the comprehensive and extensive Special Senate Committee on Illegal Drugs, Marc Emery, President of the B.C. Marijuana Party and Publisher of Cannabis Culture magazine, David Malmo-Levine, recent Supreme Court appellant and Vancouver cannabis activist, Libby Davies, NDP M.P. for Vancouver-East and former member of the ‘decrim’ Bill (C-38) House committee, Philippe Lucas from Canadians for Safe Access and the Vancouver Island Compassion Society, Alison Myrden, noted medical marijuana activist, Eugene Oscapella, director of the Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy, Kirk Tousaw, Policy Director for the BC Civil Liberties Association, Marc Boris-St. Maurice, leader of the Marijuana Party of Canada, and last but certainly not least, Alan Young, respected lawyer, law professor, and author of Justice Defiled: Perverts, Potheads, Serial Killers & Lawyers.

Canadians want their elected officials to get serious about our failed prohibition policy. Fill the Hill is an historic opportunity to tell government Canadians want an end to the harms of prohibition highlighted by the Senate report and played out in society every day.

Every day of prohibition is another day of profit for organized crime at the expense of the health and safety of Canadians across the country. It’s time for a marijuana policy that benefits Canadians and not organized crime!

Get involved! Support political change and join us on Parliament Hill, Saturday June 5th, 2004 at 1pm.